


Good Enough

by syncro37



Category: Paranatural (Webcomic)
Genre: Gen, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-22
Updated: 2016-07-03
Packaged: 2018-07-16 13:49:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,429
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7270804
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/syncro37/pseuds/syncro37
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Isabel and Ed wonder if they'll ever be "good enough" for Francisco and themselves.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The car comes to a halt. Ed leaps out and waves. “Thank you glasses guy!”

“Call me Mr. Spender.” ‘Mr. Spender’ gave Ed a weak smile which made Ed shake a little.

“Ok.” And the car sped off.

Nothing stood between Ed and the dark house peppered in vibrant lights. For once Ed failed to hear the crickets in the night, instead cracks, pows, and whams filled the sky. 

Approaching an open door, Ed witnesses a tan girl spewing bright, red pellets from her finger. The crude dummy tremored a bit. She looked behind.

“Again.”

Another red pellet skimped off her finger. The dummy, now with a tiny dent, wobbled.

“No Isabel. Like THIS!” 

BAM! 

A pile of charr radiating red, now sat on the ground. Out from the shadows, came a bronze giant with full, white whiskers hanging on his chin. Despite his white coat, despite his bulging nose, despite his arched brow, all Ed saw was red. Red glow. Red flames. Red temper.

The giant turned his head and locked eyes with Ed. “Spender told me you would be here.”

Ed nodded. 

Brawny hands gestured Ed to enter. The short boy pranced into the dojo with trembling legs. 

“Hi, I’m Ed,” he said, smiling like a chimp.

“Francisco Guerra.”

“We all call him gramps here,” Isabel giggled, “He’s my grandpa though.” She extended her hand. “I’m Isabel.”

“Hey Izzy.” Ed took it.

“Take a room upstairs. Whichever one’s empty, is yours.”

“Sure thing gramps.” Ed laughed and bolted upstairs before Fracisco could turn him into the dummy. The last thing he saw was Izzy dutifully blasting away at another target with Gramps towering over her. 

Ed wondered if Izzy ever got a licking from the old man.


	2. Chapter 2

Ed found no trouble scavenging for a humble room upstairs. To his surprise, the doors muffled the chaos with ease. All Ed had was a bed and darkness.

 

_The strong take the weak._

 

_The strong take the weak to plant their bodies._

 

_And reap the fruits of conquest._

 

The dojo was full of the strong. Ed frowned.

 

“Ghosts are silly,” Ed said to himself, “Ghosts are silly and you’re scared.”

 

Why was he so weak? Suddenly, Ed had grief trying to breath so he ditched the room in favor of the chaos it blocked out.

 

Pockets of sweaty onlookers circled a pair of warriors bouncing. Bouncing, and kicking, and even blasting. Yellow and Purple light reflected off Ed’s face. Vibrant. Flashy. _Strong_.

 

A brawly man in sandals and khakis grappled the glowing arm of a woman. He took her to the floor, only to join her with his face planting in a yellow fist. The woman’s boot went for a swift kick but it met with a wall of purple. Yellow sparked against purple until blue shattered both.  

 

A significantly younger girl wearing a dark tank top walked through the crowd, escorting two other gladiators to the center.  

 

Feeling hot in his oversized sweater, Ed tossed the green fabric in his room and scampered down. He faced the two fighters left to the side, fanning themselves, but he kept his distance.

 

“Hey! How’d you guys do that?” Ed waved and did his best to grin.

 

The pair looked at each other. “Do what?” the woman said.

 

“Everything and lights too.” Ed sprang a little closer. “How do you make _lights_?”

 

“ _Spectral energy_ ,” the woman corrected. She pointed at a corner. “I’ll show you. See that ghost over there?”

 

“What ghost?” Ed has seen a ghost before, but certainly none here.

 

The woman walker closer to the corner. “ _This_ one.”

 

“I don’t see any ghosts,” Ed interrupted.

 

The woman paused for a moment, and then shook her head. “Then why are you here?”

  
“I don’t know."


	3. Chapter 3

Ed left the girl to her own devices because he didn’t want to irritate any more than she might have already been.

 

He shuffled his way around the fighters, up the stairs, and into his room. He closed the door and felt a terrible presence. Like just a couple of days ago, glowing eyes and a purple wisp crept in and out of Ed’s sight. 

 

“So  _ now  _ you’re here?,” Ed whined, “When I’m alone, in the dark?”

 

Nothing returned Ed’s appeal except for ambiguous squealing. 

 

“You sure are fickle pal, with your comin’ n’ leavin’. Can’t you just pick  _ one _ ?”

 

Ed’s new buddy seemed intent on giving him everything but a coherent answer. The little boy quit and tossed himself on the bed, not bothering with the frivolous ritual of changing his clothes The whispers and moaning continued to pester the boy in his sleep.

 

................................

 

Isabel Guerra had beaten the sun yet again. She let out a victory cry as she leapt out of bed, tied back her long, black hair, and fed her stubby dog in less than two minutes. With bare feet, she dashed down the creaky stairs, ignoring the moaning from the dead hag above. 

 

Running out the door in the midst of darkness, Isabel cartwheeled onto the open plane of grass. She looked back, admiring the dojo, which to her, resembled a wooden castle that would someday be hers.  When she was strong enough of course.

 

Isabel thought about her training last night. Grandpa had told her that she needed more control if she ever wanted to conjure something more than a flimsy egg sac for a spectral shot. She refused to make the same mistake twice.

 

Collecting herself, Isabel took deep breaths and steadied her weight. Her kicked the air, legs making a resounding  _ swish _ .

 

_ Swoosh. Swish. Thwap.  _

 

Isabel threw a few punches.

 

_ Foop. Thwip. Shoop.  _

 

And started glowing red.

 

Isabel came to a stop and tensed her right hand. Sucking in all the air her lungs could carry, Isabel shot a red bullet at nowhere, its path erect.

 

She grinned until she heard a yelp.

 

“Ooowww.” Isabel’s grey eyes widened when she saw a boy with tangled blonde hair come into view.

 

“Ed!?” That was his name, right? 


	4. Chapter 4

“Izzy? “ Ed groaned as he rose sluggishly.

 

“My name’s  _ Isabel _ ,” She huffed. “You can stop calling me  _ Izzy _ .”

 

Ed pouted. “But Izzy’s such a cute name.”  

 

“Well  _ I’m  _ not a cute girl, I’m  _ awesome _ , so get comfy with Isabel.”

 

Ed made the mistake of snorting so Isabel punished him with a chase around the field. 

 

“What are you doing out here?” Ed shouted, whist sprinting.

 

“I’m.” Isabel sprang and took him down in one swoop. 

 

“Oof!”

 

“Training!”

 

They spent a moment to catch their breaths, then Isabel let go of Ed and stood up. She grabbed Ed and pulled him up as well. “What are  _ you  _ doing here?” 

 

Ed paused for a moment. And then another. And then-

 

“Ed?  _ Ed _ ?” Isabel waved a hand in his face. “Earth to new boy.”

 

Ed scrunched up his face, as if trying to work the world’s hardest math problem.

 

“Nevermind. You don’t have to-”

 

“No.” Ed  shook his head and looked at Isabel with confidence, “Something kept buggin’ me when I went to bed and I couldn’t sleep well.”

 

“Wait? You mean old hag Davidson?“  Trainers and Master alike, took great efforts in trying to get Old Davidson to utter something that didn’t resemble strangled cat, but to no avail. Isabel once woke up to Grandpa blowing a hole through the roof on the 10th day of her arrival. “Oh, you just get used to her.” Isabel cringed, ”We all did.”

 

“ _ That _ was a girl!?” Ed cried.

 

“Well I didn’t think she was  _ that  _ ugly.”

 

“I think we’re talking about two different ghosts here. _This_ one is a purple blob with glowing eyes that likes to pop in and out of nowhere. Not an ‘old hag’.” 

 

“Oooh.” Isabel stepped back and put her hands to her face. “Now I get it.” 

 

“Get what?”

 

The kid Grandpa sent in wasn’t just some crummy freeloader or regular trainee. He was a budding spectral. She took his hand and started walking inside. “Let’s talk ghosts new boy.”


	5. Chapter 5

“- and spirits are like ghosts, but spirits can turn into tools that give you awesome powers!” Isabel balled her fists, punching the air. Her feet smacked the floor with every step she took.

Ed kept looking around, his gaze on Isabel one second, and everywhere else the next. He twiddled his fingers and took cautious steps.

Isabel stopped pacing around the empty dojo. She leaned against one of the dummies and Ed did the same. She gave Ed a cocky grin. “So. Do you think it’s cool?”

“It feels sorta warmer than before.” Ed peered at windows and squinted.

“No, I mean, like, ghosts, and spirits, and fighting bad guys and stuff. You think it’s cool, right?”

Ed made a small “Oh.” He stared off again. “Yeah, it’s cool.”

“Cool.” For once Isabel ran out of words, which sucked because the sound of Davidson’s moaning sucked. She looked at Ed. He was mumbling to himself things she couldn’t make out.

Isabel stepped back and started kicking the dummy she had previously leaned on. The yellow stiff-sack wobbled back and forth under her direct kicks. If Ed wanted silence he’d just have to leave. She switched to her left leg; the dummy seemed less bothered her kicks now. Isabel grunted.

She looked at Ed again. He was sitting with eyes laid on every kick she threw. It was almost as if he found her kicks more interesting than becoming a spectral. How could Ed _not_ be stoked about spectral powers? _This_ was the stuff of cartoons. _This_ was something only a special few could have. Isabel kicked harder. She started to glow red again.

“Isabel,” Ed said, staring at her a little more intently. It was almost enough to make her stop. Almost. “Do you really think I’m supposed to be here?”

“Yeah I do.” What kind of a question was that? “Gramps let you in, didn’t he?’ Isabel felt it building up again. She couldn’t describe it, but it was _something_. She bounced back a bit.

“What if he’s wrong? I ain’t seein’ these ‘shades’ too often.” Ed rambled on. He glanced at Isabel and continued to himself.

Isabel paid no mind to the background noise. She could feel what she now understood as _strength_ . Something she doubted was present until she found herself shooting a proper bullet this morning. _Control_ . Isabel was supposed to have _control_ , but it was so hard when the feeling of _strength_ flooded her system. Bending her knees and clenching her fists, Isabel took a big breath yet again.

“What if something's wrong with me?”

The red dam broke. Red bursted in front of Isabel... but went nowhere. Isabel frowned as she watched wisps fall to the floor. She heaved.

“Don’t sweat it, Ed.” She looked away “The older students don’t remember it... “ She walked back over to Ed. “But everybody’s powers act... weird when they start getting them.” Isabel sat down. “Besides, my Grandpa doesn’t make mistakes.”

“How do you know?” Ed asked.

Isabel recoiled a bit, her shoulders tense. She thumped her hand against her knee. “Hmmm....well... he’s... he’s really strong and... he always knows what to do. I’ve never seen Grandpa make a mistake. Ever.” She closed her eyes and nodded with a grin. “And he’s huge.”

“Mr. Spender told me everybody makes mistakes.”

Isabel puffed her cheeks. Mr. Spender... and Grandpa. She had never seen either man on the ground. But if what Mr. Spender said was true...

“When’s breakfast?”

She quirked her eyebrows. What?

“Don’t tell me you guys don’t have breakfast. I’ll die without breakfast!” Ed pointed to his mouth.

Oh. “Guess you’ll just have to die Ed.”

Ed’s eyes widened and then narrowed, his mouth open, then closed.

“I’m _super_ serious Ed.” Isabel gave a springtime cough. “Everyone here goes out in the woods to pick berries and hunt the animals.” She leaned towards Ed, gestured him to do the same, and puts her hand near her mouth, “And sometimes, when we can’t get enough... we kill _each other_.” 

Ed’s face twisted. He pushed her away and shot up. “Sicko.”

It started with a smirk. Then a series of snickers. Then two minutes laying on the floor in fits of painful laughter. Isabel clutched her white t-shirt for dear life.

Ed took a few steps back but she got up in time to say, “No, Wait!”.

Ed paused and gave Isabel a guarded glare. “Why should I _Man Eate_ r?” 

Another bout of laughter escaped from her. “I’m kidding.” She put her hands up. “ _Just Kidding_.”

Ed tilted his head and examined her. Then, he started snickering. By the time she stopped, Ed started to cackle like a hyena.

Well that just riled Isabel up again but she made an effort to sober herself. “Don’t be so loud. You’ll wake Gramps up and he’ll be super cranky.”

Ed simmered himself to mere snickers and then halted. “No, but seriously when’s breakfast.”

“When he wakes up.”

Ed pouted.

Isabel snorted. “C’mon you big baby.” She walked to the center of the room, below lines of colorful banners. Ed followed. He couldn’t use his powers like the other trainers but Isabel had been sitting for too long to care. She stopped and turned with a raised eyebrow. “Wanna fight?”

“No.” 

“Wanna spar?” She pumped up her fists.

“Nope.”

“Why not?”

“Just don’t wanna.” Ed rubbed his hand behind his neck and offered a sheepish smile.

  
Isabel huffed and put her hands on her hips “Ed, no one’s gonna die in a fight.”

“That’s what you think! Th-”

“Ed, I pinky prom-”

Heavy footsteps echoed around the room. She sighed and folded her arms. Ed shrunk and backed up.

The stairs moaned as they usually did when Grandpa went down, and as usual, he left a big shadow on the pale walls. What could Isabel say? He was simply a big man.

Isabel smiled. “Morning Gramps.”

His feet found the floor. “Isabel. Did you feed the dog?”

“Yeah.”

He nodded his head. “Good. How’s your spectral shot?”

Isabel blushed. “Ok.”

Grandpa grunted. “You need more practice... and control.”

“Mmm.”

“Why aren’t you practicing.”

“I was gonna spar with Ed and see if he could fight.”

Grandpa glanced at Ed. “He can’t.” Ed froze. “There’s no way such a scrawny thing could fight. Even with all the power in the world.” He scratched his beard. “Isabel, get breakfast and then practice your spectral shot some more. Any fighter is useless without a perfect spectral shot.”

Isabel nodded. “What about Ed?”

“I’ll deal with him.” 

Ed paled and looked ready to faint. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. What do y'all think?

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback and Criticism is welcome!


End file.
